Pride of Styria
Once the flagship of the Styrian Triarchy it was destroyed when imperial forces were able to board and detonate the ship while she was in dock. History The ship itself formerly called the Pride of Deus an oberon class imperial battleship was part of the imperial navy until the Battle of Styria when it sided with the invading Triarchy. This act along with the fact that it became the flagship of the Triarchy and being a battleship made its destruction a priority. Destruction The imperial attack was masterminded by Interrogator Letra Macvicar who was on the battleship when she turned and barely survived the treachery. She exploited the fact that many mercenary companies were being employed by the Triarchy to shore up any deficiencies in strength from fighting a two front war. The plan was simple, imperial soldiers are to masquerade as mercenary companies and fight for the Triarchy and in time they would have an opportunity to board the flagship as all mercenaries are exclusively deployed against the Xo’nad Coalition there was little chance of friendly fire. This came to pass when several of the fake mercenary companies captured the attention of several Loxomod faction delegates. They planned to use them to build themselves a private army and launch a coup against the Assembly. The interrogator took advantage of this by manipulating them into positioning said mercenaries as additional guards aboard the flagship as they themselves planned on seizing the ship for their eventual coup. Once this was achieved the imperials merely bided their time until the flagship returned to dock over the capital. After which other imperial forces in the area masquerading as mercenaries on transports bound for the frontlines seized control of their ships and made a frantic run towards the flagship. Most never reached their destination either the attempted hijacking failed or were destroyed by Triarchy ships and weapon grids. Those that made it though were able to quickly board the ship as the imperial forces inside the flagship also revealed their true colors and secured the vital docking areas of the ship. The imperial forces split into three groups. The first was a diversionary attack on the bridge meant to lull the Triarchy into thinking the objective was to seize the ship rather than destroy it. The second was to take control of batteries and their crew and fire on the ships outside. This forced the ships outside to flee, be destroyed or fire on their own flagship. The last group was to make their way towards the warp and real space engines and detonate it. This took several hours but at the end the flagship was engulfed in a fiery explosion and the Imperium stood triumphant. Damage Not only was the Pride of Styria destroyed but the ships and docks around it already damaged by fire from captured batteries were also destroyed or damaged. The largest piece of the flagship also fell upon Styria obliterating a hive upon its impact. Effects For the imperial remnants this was a solid boost to morale. At the small cost of about a dozen regiments worth of imperial guard, they were able to deal a solid blow to the military and production capabilities of their mortal foes. Besides the Ursus dysnasty that is. There was also the added benefit of a confirmed kill on the admiral commanding the ship who was the chief conspirator of the betrayal during the Battle of Styria. The destruction of the hive also killed a general of the Triarchy who was part of Murr’s inner circle as he was touring the hive. Such relics of a bygone era were a dire blow. The Interrogator also received the respect and accolade from the inquisition both inside and outside imperial remnant territories and solidified her position as one of the movers and shakers of the imperial remnants. For the Triarchy the Loxomod faction of the Assembly was quickly discredited due to their role in the debacle and gave the Styrian faction the chance to decisively tip the balance of power to their side and enjoyed a majority for several decades. Only in these recent years has the Loxomod faction been regaining a shadow of its former strength and influence once again. Mercenaries of the Triarchy are to this day carefully monitored and banned from boarding all ships of the line under pain of death of mercenary and his affiliated company. The Meja Strazar have also reacted to the attack. In addition to more stringent security protocols in screening mercenaries and ship defense, a term limit of 30 years was imposed on all holders of the rank of General and above. After which, said officer was to also mandatorily teach in the many military academies of the Triarchy. This is to preserve the knowledge such august people possess. The Verdo Strazar was also criticized by the Styrian faction for their inability to prevent such a disaster and the death of the admiral who incidentally was also the most vocal among the nobility of his distaste of the mutants which he saw them as and only allowed a small contingent on board his vessel.